1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to two-piece disposable cups, suited for cold and warm beverages, peanuts, pop-corn and other solid foodstuffs, and especially to cups made of paper or paperboard.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Customary disposable cups usually comprise a bottom, a generally truncated conical body or liquid holding portion. This type of cup will be referred to as a two-piece cup. To prevent spilling, a separate lid can be applied over the opening of the cup. This type of cup will be referred to as a three-piece cup, since it has a body portion and a separate lid, as opposed to the cup according to the invention, which has a body portion with an integrated lid. Most standard cup designs thus use a separate replaceable lid to render the cup spill proof or spill resistant. Attempts have been made to incorporate a folding lid in a two-piece design, however, such designs have a number of functional problems. These, and other designs, use built in straws or side spout mechanisms or have a closure apparatus that requires a complex folding mechanisms, rendering them expensive and/or difficult to manufacture, difficult for consumers to use and/or difficult to stack.
A problem with two-piece cups is that they possess a wide open top, which is subject to spillage especially if used during sporting events, such as running events, or in any situation where there is an activity or where significant movement of the cup occurs. The problem has been overcome in the marketplace by the use of the three-piece cups, which involves placement of a detachable lid secured to the top of the cup. The three-piece design suffers from a variety of problems such as the inconvenience and time required to secure the lid to the cup, storage and transport, disposal problems if the lid were to blow off, and inconvenience in terms of controlling the flow of liquid because your nose hits the lid of the cup and potential spillage when liquids splash out of the opening.
Two-piece disposable cups with integral lids are shown in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,960,987 (Solland et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,665 (McSherry). Both of these designs have a deep ovate semicircular shaped lid portion of the die-cut cup, making the lid come to a rest position/sealing position in a semi-upright position along the opening edge of the cup, leaving the cup body portion cross-section substantially circular. Some type of locking mechanism on the upper edge of the cup is employed to hold the lid to the top edge of the cup opening.